Iran's Economy Getting Crushed as Trump Sanctions Kick In
Sanctions imposed by President Donald Trump on Iran are taking a bite out of the prosperity of Iranians .
“All our 45 workers are jobless now,” said Farzad Rashidi, CEO of Tamnoush, a soft drink company, according to Reuters. “The men are driving taxis, and women are back to being housewives.”
“We have lost around 5 billion rials in the last few months, so the board decided to suspend all activities for as long as the fluctuations in the currency market continue,” Rashidi said. The loss would equal roughly $120,000.
“It is stupid to keep driving when you see it’s a dead end,” he said.
Many affected by the economy’s troubles would only speak to Reuters if their last names were withheld.
“The property market is slowing because high prices have made houses unaffordable,” said Armin, 29, who has a mechanical engineering degree but has been working in the construction sector. “It is getting worse day by day.”
Change is coming: Trump’s sanctions are crushing Iran’s job market and potentially destabilizing the regime https://t.co/2SGOV4wine via @businessinsider
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Nima, a legal adviser for startups and tech firms, told Reuters the lack of export access is crippling new developers of games and other software.
“The situation has become so severe that many of these teams decided to suspend development of their games and are waiting to see what will happen next. Without access to international markets, they see very little chance of making a profit.”
An NPR report posted by WUWM showed that Iranians believe their government is also to blame.
“Most of the people I know don’t approve of President Trump’s behavior. But they’re also very skeptical about the performance of the Iranian government,” NPR quoted an Iranian named Said as saying. “We’re not political experts, but we can see these decisions are affecting our day-to-day lives very negatively. I expect more anger, more protests.”
The sanctions are making Iran’s airlines even more unsafe.
“We are flying planes with 60-year-old technology and these planes are technically worn out,” said retired pilot Houshang Shahbaz, according to USA Today.
“U.S. sanctions have led to many crashes, and deaths.”
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said last week that the sanctions are harsh by design to get Iran to change its ways.
“Treasury’s imposition of unprecedented financial pressure on Iran should make clear to the Iranian regime that they will face mounting financial isolation and economic stagnation until they fundamentally change their destabilizing behavior,” Mnuchin said.
Iran’s foreign minister, however, said the sanctions will be ineffective, according to the U.K. Guardian.
“We are used to pressure and we are used to resisting pressure,” Javad Zarif told the newspaper.
“Sanctions always hurt and they hurt ordinary people, but sanctions seldom change policy, and that has been the problem with U.S. sanctions all the time. They do not take people back to the negotiating table. In fact, they strengthen the resolve to resist.”
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